A Better Life In Christ Series

Ephesians 1:1-6

A Better Life in Christ

Introduction

Are you looking for a better life? You are not alone. People everywhere today are looking for a better life. Politicians know this, because in every presidential election, candidates declare how they will lead our country so we can all have a better life. Marketing advisors know this, for it seems that every commercial we see tries to convince us that if we just had this or that product we’d have a better life. Our colleges are filled with people looking for a better life.

However, the way to a better life is not found in politicians, money, success, or any other temporal thing. A better life has nothing to do with the homes in which we live or the cars we drive. The only way to a better life is found in Jesus Christ and in understanding whom we are, what we have in Him, and how to acquire it.

Jesus very clearly said, "I am come that ye might have life, and that ye might have it more abundantly." A man one time tried to convince me that this meant Jesus wants us to have all the stuff we want. Jesus clearly taught that the abundant life is not about things, but rather is about a quality of life found only in Him. It is not enough to know we are Christians. There is so much more. Our lives are a journey, and on our journey to a better life we must understand three basic facts about ourselves.

In Christ you are a saint. (1-3)

What is a saint? The dictionary defines a saint as one who is a very holy person; one who is pure in heart and upright in life. While the world around us freely uses this definition, we need to understand how misleading it is. The Bible writers chose a word that means "holy ones, righteous ones, those who have been separated from the rest."

A saint is any and every born again child of God. The moment you repent of your sin and place your faith in Christ you are clothed in the righteousness of Christ, you are set apart and are holy in the eyes of God. Though we have been born again we still have a sin nature, we still mess up, and we still fail. There are days and times when we don’t feel saved, we don’t feel like saints, but your being a saint has nothing to do with your feelings. It has everything to do with your eternal position in heaven.

You may say, "I don’t feel holy; I don’t feel worthy to be a saint." What you need to question is whether you really are. Are you sure of your salvation? Are you living like a saint? You may have these feelings because you are living in sin and need to do something about it. But you may have these feelings when there is nothing really the matter. None of us is worthy, but God has made us worthy. That’s why Paul wrote of us as being in Christ Jesus. The devil will try to tell you otherwise. "You’re so bad, you’re so unworthy, God can’t love you, and He can’t use you...Don’t believe it! They’re lies from the pits of hell!

God bought you with the precious blood of His only begotten Son; He saved you from the wrath to come. You are not your own, you’ve been bought with a price! When God looks at you now He doesn’t see your inadequacies, but rather He sees the righteousness of Christ that covers you.

Being in Christ is cause for celebration. Paul says in verse 2, "grace and peace be to you." This was a common greeting in those days, but what does it mean? To have grace is to be in favor with God, a favor you received but did not deserve. The peace Paul wrote of is a peace so many are searching for but can’t find. The believer should rejoice because of the peace he has in Christ.

Not only does the saint have grace and peace, but also he has been blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. This is not the house, the car, the wife or kids. This is not money, success, popularity or power. It is spiritual blessings that you have in Christ that nothing can ever take away, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt. Where is your heart today? Is it here? If you want a better life then you must be in Christ, and you must set your affections on things above.

You have been chosen by God. (5)

Listen to the strong words of Paul. "He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world." He predestinated us unto the adoption of children. You didn’t choose God, He chose you. John said,